Clark's early goal propels Dynamo past Montreal

Houston, TX (SportsNetwork.com) - Ricardo Clark's sixth-minute goal was enough to lead the Houston Dynamo to a 1-0 win over the Montreal Impact at BBVA Compass Stadium on Friday, moving the home side into third place.

Houston entered the match two points back of Montreal for third in the Eastern Conference, and Clark's well-placed shot in the early stages was enough to move the Dynamo past the Impact, who played a mostly uninspired match despite an important three points at stake.

Montreal has now claimed just one point from its last four games, while Houston is peaking at the right time with three wins and a draw from its four most recent contests.

The goal in the sixth minute was started by Boniek Garcia's lobbed ball from midfield onto the chest of Giles Barnes, who laid it off for Clark to curl home from 25 yards.

Both sides seemed cautious over the remainder of the first half, and Montreal goalkeeper Troy Perkins did well to keep his team within a goal in the 52nd when he stopped a close-range shot from Davis.

Andrew Wenger injected some life into the Impact when he came on as a substitute in the 62nd and he nearly set up a goal for Davy Arnaud, but his goalbound effort was blocked by Dynamo defender Bobby Boswell.

Wenger had another chance two minutes later when he got in behind the Houston defense and had only goalkeeper Tally Hall to beat. However, Hall got enough of Wenger's shot to parry it past the post.